12 Things We Learned From Dark Side Of The Ring: TNA (Parts 1 & 2)

5. “Ex-WWE Guys” Take Flak

That money was being frittered away on legacy star power coming in from WWE.

Let's be crystal clear here. VICE's doc wasn't shaming guys like Kurt Angle or Jeff Hardy. Both of those guys received a ton of praise during the first 2 episodes of 'Dark Side'. Making things even clearer, Scott D'Amore said that some coming over from WWE “really helped”, whilst others “just showed up”. As soon as he said that, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall were shown.

That wasn't an accident. Nash could also be seen lazing around on a couch during a backstage skit when Jim Cornette blasted some of the older veterans for squeezing every dime they could from TNA's coffers for very little in return. On that note, longtime producer David Sahadi recalled seeing Nash “schmoozing” with Dixie at the bar and telling her what she wanted to hear so he could bag himself another contract.

Ouch. Sean Oliver might have to ask 'Big Sexy' about all of this during one of his upcoming podcasts. VICE's talking heads make it rather obvious that he's seen as somebody who stole a wage from the promotion for years. His good buddy Scott Hall was punted into the same category as well.

In truth, the "ex-WWE guys" thing didn't become a massive problem until later on when Hulk Hogan decided to give some of his old buddies another payday, but anyone tuning into 'Dark Side' would believe that Nash and Hall's deals weren't worth the paper they were printed on in terms of tangible returns.

They certainly didn't mean as much to TNA as Vladimir Kozlov...